Machine for treating animal offal and the like



June 18, 1929. R, L, O'M'EARA 1,717,465

MACHINE FOR TREATING ANIMAL OFFAL AND THE LIKE Filed Oct. 15, 1925 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 2% V [fa/Grab E elf/Lain: @WEAW g ,yi/ 612-1, F/AMWQQW ma June 18, 1929. R. OMEARA MACHINE FOR TREATING ANIMAL OF'FAL AND THE LIKE 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Oct. 15, 1925 Patented June 18, 1929 warren STATES r ante-e5 rArsnr ounce,

RICHARD L. OMEARA, on CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, Assmnoiaao ECHANICAL MANUFAC- TUBING COMPANY, or CHICAGO, ILLrnoIs, A CORPORA IO on ILLINOIS.

MACHINE non TREATING ANIMAL onset AND trnu LIKE.

Application filed October 15, 1925. Serial No. 62,537.

The purpose of the present invention is to provide an improved rendering apparatus adapted for the rendering of packing house offal and the separation of fat and grease from the other constituents of the material treated. My novel apparatus is more particularly designed for use in carrying out the dry process of treating such material, in which the material is subjected to a dry heat to remove the constitutional moisture of the material and melt the fat, which latter is drained off from the material, either at intervals or at the conclusion of the rendering operation. Various modifications in detail of this procedure are known, and my invention does not relate to the particular process employed, but to the construction and arrangement of the parts of the machine, which is designed to be used to accomplish various modes of treatment of the material of the general character above mentioned. The object of my invention is the provision of a rendering apparatus suitable for general use and which because of certain novel features of construction, shall be particularly strong and rugged, possess high efficiency in the application of the heating element, and be provided with stirring elements which shall be effective in operation, constructed, to permit ready assembly of the connected parts of the apparatus and operate to discharge the treated material at the conclusion of the rendering operation. With the foregoing and incidental objects and advantages in the construction and arrangement of parts in view I have designed and invented the rendering apparatus illustrated in the accompanying drawings and hereinafter described in detail, the essential elements of my invention being more particularly point out in the appended claims defining my invention.

In the drawings Figure 1 isa longitudinal central vertical section of my novel rendering apparatus; Fig. 2 is a vertical cross-section of the same on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1, looking in the direction of the arrow, all of the parts excepting the central shaft being shown in elevation; Fig. 3 is an clevationof the parts lying to the right of the vertical plane indicated by the dotted line 33 of Fig. 4, the arrow indicating the direction in which the parts are viewed; and Fig. 4 is an axial ver tical section of the central shaft and heating circumferential corrugations the'two shells.

being spaced apart and sealed at their ends by spacing rings 4. 4c to which both shells are welded. The annular space between the drums forms a steam chamber or jacket into: which steam (whichis the heating agent universally employed. in such apparatus) is ad-' mitted through inlet openings 5-5, drain openings 6-6 being provided through which water of condensation maybe carried off.

It may here be stated that my apparatus is designed to be used in the rendering of fatbearing material on a large scale, and in" practice a suitabledimension for the outer drum or shell is about five feet in diameter, and twelve feet in length. i

The ends of the steam jacket above de-' scribed are closed and supported by skeley ton frame castings 7 and 8. to which. are se cured metal plates '7 and 8*, respectively serving to completely close the ends of the rendering chambert except for the openings provided for the introduction and removal of the material to be treated), the castings being formed with central hubs, marked 9 and 10, respectively, and large openings, marked 11 and 12 respectively. The openings 11 and 12 may either, or both, be used either as feed openings or as ventopenings for the escape of the odors and vapors and steam generated durmg the rendering process, and whether functioning as feed openings or vents it is desirable that they shall be of ample capacity, as illustrated.

It will be understood that in some may be desirable at some stage of the particular process employed to entirely close thereudering chamber so that pressure may be gen erated from the water of constitution of the material under treatment and thus produce cases it,

more or less distintegration of the material,

andthat in other cases it may bedesired to subject the rendering chamber to a vacuum to hasten evaporation of the, water. I therefore contemplate the use of suitable control valves for hermetically sealing the openings 11 and 12, and suitable connection with other appa-' ratus not herein described, for accomplishing theresults desired or essential to carry out the particular process in which my novel rendering tank may in a givencase be used.

Rotatably mounted in bearings 1n the hubs 9 and 10 of the'end framemembersis a rotatable stirring and heating memberconsisting of a central shaft 13 to which is secured 'a helical heating coil 14, which is braced and supported by radial arms carrying a series of stirring and discharge elements. The shaft 13 is hollow and at its ends open to the steam packed by means of suitable glands 15 and 16,

respectively, to form steam tight joints hermetically sealing the rendering compartment of the machine. The steamis admitted to the hollow shaft and heatingcoilthrough steam pipes 17 and'l8 which pass through suitable packedjoints marked 19 and 20, re-

' spectively, arranged to permit rotation of the shaft and parts carried thereby. The shaft 13 is rotated, inthe present instance, bya gear wheel 21 secured to one end thereof, and is arranged to be turned in either direction, as des1red,by-su1table operatmg connections, not necessary to be here described.

At oneendand at the lower side ofthe rendering. chamber a discharge opening is provided, inthe present instance this opening being. formed in the frame casting 8 and arranged. to be closed by a door 80. An outlet is provided'for drainage of the melted fat, and in some cases, in accordance with the particular practice being followed, for the drainage of water resulting from disintegration of the material being treated, this outlet in thepresentcase being formedin the door 30 near its bottom. V r r In thepractical use of my rendering apparatus, the rendering chamber will ordinarily be filled to'from oneahalf to two thirds of its total capacitywith the offal to be rendered, which material will offer a very considerable resistance to the, rotation of the coil and scraper blades later to be described, and it is therefore essential to provide a particularly strong and rigid support for such member This I accomplish'bymeans of a series of radial flat supporting arms 22 which are spaced axially along and. are-welded to the shaft 13, and are also welded to the inner faces of the coil 1a. These arms are set edge-t I their endsare equipped withagitating blades,

comprising scraping and stirring blades, both kindsof which blades act to agitate and stir the material, and with discharge blades as.

will next be described.

In the present instance I have provided ten sets of double paddles or blades,each set mcluding an agitating blade and an associated.

discharge blade, the sets of associated blades andthe stirrer arms whichsupport the several sets being arranged in pairs diametrically opposite each other. Each set of blades includes either a scrapin blade 25 and" an associated dischar e blade 25 or 'aistirriiw D 7 23 blade 26 and associated discharge blade, marked 26 ,secured together and supported at the end of a pair of the armsl23. As shown in'the drawing the scraping blade (marked 25) at the outer end of one pair-"of arms 23 isformed with a corrugated edge, and this blade is set to have veryslight clearance witl the corrugated" inner shell 2, while, the diametrically'opposite stirring blade, (marked 26) is formed with a straight edge andhas' sufficient clearance inside the corrugation to permit the entire rotating'structure to be inserted inside the drum structure by radial displacement of the shaft18'with reference to the axis of the drum.

The scraping blades 25 and stirring. blades 26 are disposed parallel with the axis of rotation of the shaft 13, while the associated discharge blades 25 and'26 are setrat an angle thereto. i

The blades 25 and 26 may be secured-to the arms 23in any manner which is sufliciently strong and secure, and inthe present instance I employ angle clips 27 which are each riveted both to the particular arm and to the blade 25 or 26, as the case may be, and weld the one end of the discharge blade to the associated scraping or stirring blade and connect the other end of such discharge blade to the scrap ing blade by a spacing strut or bolt 28. The

arms 23 and the scraping or stirring blades may, however, be riveted or boltedtogether if desired. v p t It, IS obvious that when the coil and blade structure is rotatedto drivethe blades 25 and 26 against the material the material will be agitated without substantial displacement late ally by the blades, while when rotated r in the opposite direction (which is dcnewhen it is desired to discharge tl e material th rough the discharge door 30, which is opened for the purpose) the action of the inclined discharge blades 25* and 26 will work the materialtowards the discharge opening. The inclination of the coil 14 is in the present instance such as to oppose the discharging action of the discharge blades, but'the effect of this coil is relatively slight, and is overcome by the action of the discharge blades when the coil is reversely rotated to discharge the con tents of the rendering chamber.

The axial spacing and edgewisc disposition of the flat arms 22 and 23 with reference to their path of rotation is conducive to comminution of the material under treatment, and also affords maximum strength and rigidity against torsional strain due toresist ance offered by the material.

I claim:

1. A machine for treating animal oll'al and the like having a cylindrical rendering chamher and having agitating and heating means arranged within said chamber including a rotatably mounted hollow shaft communicating with a source for supplying steam, and a spiral coil arranged concentrically of and secured to and comn'iunicating with the interior of said shaft, and a pluralityof axially spaced flat radial arms set to rotate edgewise and severally welded to said shaft and inner faces of the turns of the coil, and a plurality of other axially-spaced flat radialarms also set to rotate edgewise and projecting beyond said coil and severally welded to said shaft and side faces of the turns of the coil,

and agitating blades secured to the ends of said last mentioned arms.

2. A machine for treating animal offal and the like having a horizontal cylindrical. rendering chamber, and having agitating and heating means arranged within said chamber including a rotatably mounted hollow shaft communicating with a source for supplying steam, a spiral coil arranged concentrically of and secured to and communicating with the interior of said shaft.v a pin "ality of axially spaced radial arms severally welded to said shaft and side faces of the turns of said coil and projecting beyond said coil, said radial arms being also angularly spaced about the shaft whereby a pair of adjacent arms and the segment of the coil between the points of attachment of said arms have a mutual bracing action and agitating blades secured to the ends of said arms.

3. A machine for treating animal offal and the like having a horizontal cylindrical renderin chamber, agitating and heating means arranged within said chamber including a rotarablymounted hollow shaft connnunieating with a source for supplying steam, a

spiralcoil arranged concentrically of and se' ed to said shaft and sidefaces of the turns i of said coil and vprojecting beyond said coil, and 'a plurality of agitating blades each socured to the ends of a pair of said arms.

4. A machine for treating animal oflal and the like having a horizontal cylindrical rendering chamber and having agitating and heating means arranged within said chamber including a rotatably mounted hollow shaft communicating with a source for supplying steam, a spiral coil arranged concentrically of and secured to and communicating with the interior of said shaft, a plurality of aXially spaced fiat radial arms set to rotate edgewise and arranged in pairs and projecting beyond said coil and severally welded to said shaft and side faces of the turns of the'coil, and agitating bladeseach secured to the ends of one pair of said arms.

A machine for treating animal offal and the like having a horizontally arranged ren-r dering chamber formed with circular end walls and a connectlng clrcumferentially corrugated wall, and having within said chamber agitating mechanism including a central shaft and a plurality of blades supported by said shaftan'd formed each with an undulating scraping edge corresponding in outline to the corrugations of said connecting wall and arranged ad acent thereto and a plurality of stirring blades also supported by and spaced nearer the shaft than said first-mentioned blades and angular-1y spaced with respect to such first-mentioned blades to permit radial displacement of the shaft and clearanceof the blades in assembling the shaft and blades as a whole.

6. A machine fortreating animal ofi'al and the like having a horizontally arranged rendering chamber formed with circular end walls and a connecting circumferentially corrugated. walhand having agitating mechanism including a central shaft and a plurality of blades supported by said shaft and formedeach with an undulating scraping edge corresponding in outline to the corru-' gations of said connectingwall and arranged adjacent thereto and a plurality of stirring blades also supported by and spaced nearer the shaftthan said first mentioned blades and arranged diametrically opposite said first mentioned blades to permit radial displacement of the shaft and clearance of the blades in assembling the shaft and blades as a whole. i I

7. A machine for treating animal offal and the like having a horizontal cylindrical rendering chamber, agitating and heating means arranged Within saidchaniber including a I rotatably mounted hollow shaft, a spiral coil arranged concentrically of and secured to and communicating with the interior of said shaft communicating With a source for supplying steam, radial arms secured to said shaft and side faces of the, turns of said coil and pr0-' 4 V V. I 1,717,465

jecting beyond said coil, and associated agi: tELlJlIl and dischar 'e blades secured to Jan's of said. arms, said agitating blades being set transverse to the plane of rotation of said shaft and saiddischarge blades being set obliquely thereto. 7

V RICHARD L. OB IEARA.

CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION.

Patent No. 1,717,465. Granted June 18, 1929, to

RICHARD L. O'MEARA.

it is hereby certified that error appears in the printed specification of the above numbered patent requiring correction as follows: Page 4, line 2, claim 7, after the Word "shaft" and before the comma, insert the words "communicating with a source for supplying steam" and strike out the same in lines 5 and 6, same page and claim; and that the said Letters Patent should he read with these corrections therein that the same may conform to the record of the case in the Patent Office.

Signed and sealeti'this 30th day of July, A. D. 1929.

M. J. Moore, (Seal) Acting Commissioner of Patents. 

